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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. branch — a division
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. field — a subject
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. lean — to bend
  9. field — farmland
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. field — for sport
  13. file — a tool
  14. chest — a box
  15. file — a line of people
  16. file — a document
  17. chest — of your body
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. lean — thin
  21. deal — to handle
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. chip — to eat

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com